Friday, October 31, 2008

Paid Online Surveys: Prevent Being Scammed!

By Pete Sjogren

Paid online surveys have been lingering in the web for a while now, and numerous individuals have been participating in it hoping to get extra money to pay for house bills, everyday necessities or purchase some wants. Companies conduct some comprehensive market research on their goods and service and are capable of paying consumers who join their surveys and focus groups. The internet contains a lot of these paid for surveys and it is important that we discover the real survey sites from the bogus ones.

There is actually some light behind paid online surveys in the web; you get paid for sharing what you think about their products. Companies big or small are aware of how significant consumer opinion is because it is what would help them make betterments on the quality of their products and services and in turn provide better income. These online surveys are part of a bigger marketing campaign that companies are paying a big sum for.

Paid for surveys can tackle about a wide array of topics which can include your favorite restaurants, movies, music, events, food, grocery items and even the latest technology in computers and telecommunication. These surveys are aimed at different age groups, income range, work and field of interests. Whatever category theses surveys are in, they all give companies invaluable data to improve their products and services.

The moment you register in genuine paid online surveys, you will be required to relay some important data that will basically include your age, gender, profession and income or salary range. Once the survey site has gathered all the necessary information, you will then be waiting for their email whenever there is a survey that you qualify for based on the data you have given. An invitation will be sent to you containing the direct link to the survey form itself.

The incentives coming from paid online surveys can come in a wide variety of forms like cash, gift certificates or reward points that are redeemable to cash. Different survey sites will have different methods of rewarding consumers that participate in their surveys; it can be a direct payment of a small sum of money, or a point system which will need you to acquire a certain number of points in order to get cash or freebies.

While the number of paid online surveys increases in the web, so do the number of fake websites wanting to take advantage of people looking for extra source of income. These websites are endorsing themselves as one that is capable of providing a huge list of paid for surveys in exchange for a membership fee.

But the membership does not come free, and this is where bogus sites will take advantage of your search for extra income; membership comes at a price ranging from $25-$100 or some even more. These sites contains a lot of information on the services they offer after you sign-up, and even give you pictures of the earnings of their members just to entice you to join. Problem is, after signing-up, they will leave you with fake survey sites or those that are expired and no longer active.

These bogus websites will try to tempt you with huge monthly or daily income and tell you that you can earn enough to quit your job and get retired early. They also present you with member testimonials that are so believable and make their site more irresistible to those unaware of their gimmicks. They even tell you that they have a 24-hour customer service feature which will answer your queries and give you guides, but after joining you'll be surprised that no one is answering their chat programs and email contact options.

It is important to keep in mind that you can never get filthy rich by just participating in paid online surveys. Yes there are some legitimate sites offering great deals for completing surveys, but it can never be enough to replace your day job salary or business income. Be warned that many websites offering paid for surveys is capable of luring you into their hoax programs and take advantage of you. Just remember to stay away from those sites that require payment on your part and those that have offers that are too good to be true.

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